I came home from a weekend trip to Atlanta to find my apartment swarming with fruit flies. Luckily, I’ve done battle with these little bastards before… (I keep fresh fruit and don’t spend much time at home) By the next morning all the fruit flies were gone. Here’s how I did it.

1. Build the trap
2. Hide the prize

1. Build the trap

The trap alone is SUPER effective at eliminating flies (the trap pictured above had been on my counter for about an hour – those are flies inside).

You’ll need:

• red wine and/or apple-cider vinegar
• a tall glass
• paper
• tape

Pour about 1/2 an inch of bait into the glass. I find 50% apple cider vinegar 50% red wine works the best, but flies will go for either one alone, too. Next, roll a sheet of paper into a funnel with a hole slightly larger than a fruit fly and use tape to secure it. Finally, put the funnel into the glass pointy-side-down and use tape to ensure a tight seal around the rim of the glass.

The top of the funnel should be an inch or two from the liquid in the bottom of the glass. The flies smell the bait, fly in through the funnel and can’t find their way out… stupid flies!

I release the flies outside if they opt for the trap; otherwise I clap them to death with great relish… A first in this particular battle was when killed 2 flies with 1 clap! I rule!

2. Hide the prize

While it’s nice to have bananas, avocados, and kiwis out to ripen you have to make sacrifices in war…

Take out the trash, wipe down counters and the stove/range to remove any crumbs or oil remnants, and put all the fruit in the fridge overnight – cold kills any eggs and hiding other food drives flies toward the trap.

Finally, pour a little bleach to make key areas especially inhospitable:

• In sink drains
• In toilet bowls
• In bottoms of trash cans

Epilogue

Getting rid of other food and setting up “the trap” should leave you fruit-fly-free in 6-12 hours. I use this trick a few times every year!

A proactive habit I get into in the summer is having a “peels” trash bag and a “trash” trash bag. The “peels” go out every morning while “trash” goes out when it’s full… this helps keep the fruit flies from coming back.

It takes some time, but these sprouts are well-worth it. They will fill you up and make you say “wow” with every bite.

This dish has become one of my staples. You’re going to love it!

Ingredients

• 1 lb of Brussels Sprouts
• 3 Ripe Tomatoes
• 3 Tbsp. Olive Oil
• 1 tsp. Salt (to taste)
• 1/2 tsp. Red Pepper Flakes (to taste)
• 1/2 tsp. Ground Black Pepper (to taste)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. In the meantime, prepare the brussels sprouts as follows: Slice off any ugly parts of the stem (probably about 1/8 inch). Then, cut the sprout in half. Finally pull off any loose or wilted leaves. What you have now should look like this:

Mix the oil, salt, red pepper, and black pepper in a large bowl. Then, add the prepared sprouts and toss until the sprouts are coated with oil and spices.

Next, arrange the sprouts on a cookie sheet so they are all flat-side-down and put them in the oven. Cook on one side for 20 minutes, remove and turn all the sprouts, and cook on the other side for 10 minutes. When you take them out, they should be browned, but not burnt. I like mine a bit crispy. Mine looked like this:

Finally, dice the tomatoes, and serve warm. The cool tomatoes and the warm sprouts complement each other nicely. Feel free to stuff yourself… this is one of the healthiest things you can eat!

Best of all, it was super-easy! Read on to find out how to make it.

Ingredients

• 4 large zucchinis
• 1 medium onion
• 1 red bell pepper
• 1 c mushrooms
• 8 oz tempeh (1 package)
• 1 large clove garlic
• 1 Tbsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. red pepper flakes
• 3 Tbsp. Olive Oil
• non-stick cooking spray
• salt to taste

Directions

Begin by pre-heating the oven to 450 degrees. Then slice each of the zucchinis lengthwise and scoop out most of the insides with a spoon to make little zucchini canoes.

Set the guts to the side and put the zucchinis in a roasting dish with a liberal coating of non-stick spray. Once the oven is pre-heated, roast the zucchini for about 30 minutes, or until they start to brown.

Meanwhile, dice the remaining ingredients and warm the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic, onions, mushrooms, and peppers, and fry on high for about 10 minutes. Next, reduce the heat to medium/low and add everything else (zucchini guts, tempeh, basil, pepper, and salt). Keep turning the whole mixture with a spatula as it starts to thicken, blend together, and brown slightly (about 20 min.).

Finally, pull the roasted zucchini shells out of the oven and spoon the mixture from the skillet into the hollowed out grooves. Serve and enjoy! I paired this with some whole wheat pasta and a home-made basil-pesto sauce… Yum.

I show one version of this spread, but it’s very versatile and can seasoned any way you like. Read on for the full recipe!

Ingredients

• 8oz extra-firm tofu
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 handful of fresh cilantro leaves
• 2 Tbsp. spicy mustard
• 2 tsp. lemon juice
• 2 tsp. white vinegar
• pinch of salt
• pinch of red pepper
• pinch of black pepper

Directions
This recipe uses a food processor (maybe a blender would work). Combine the ingredients in this order: First, add the tofu, oil, and mustard. Pulse these together until you achieve a smooth consistency. Then add the cilantro and process until the leaves are broken up.

Next, add the liquids and sprinkle the spices onto the top of the liquids. This will help the spices mix evenly into the spread. Finish by processing until the whole thing is very smooth and well-blended. Finsihed! This makes about 1.5 cups.

As I said, this recipe can be re-made in an uncountable number of ways. Experiment with different spices and spice-combinations. I’ve made sesame-ginger spread, southwest spread, tomato-basil spread… you name it! It’s really hard to mess up!

Bonus! Tasty Sandwich

To make the wrap shown above, I lightly fried a whole-wheat tortilla in a small skillet with some Pam. Next, I spread on a good bit of our new creation and added warm chick peas, and cool, sliced roma tomatoes. Finally, I garnished it with a bit of left-over cilantro… yum.

Follow the link for the full recipe!

I’ll lay this out in 4 mini-recipes since this is my most complex dish to date!

Wasabi Marinade:

Ingredients

• 2 tsp wasabi powder
• 2 tsp soy sauce
• 2 tsp white vinegar
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp ginger powder
• 1/4c grapefruit juice

Directions
Easy! Simply stir these all together in a small bowl or dish.

Tasty Tofu Blocks:

Ingredients

• 8oz of Extra-Firm Tofu
• 1/2c of vegetable oil

Directions
Now, this is the important part! I just learned a great trick that has gotten me eating tofu again! Right when you get the it from the store drain the water from the container and freeze the tofu. Then, once its frozen move it to the fridge and let it thaw back out. The process of freezing and re-thawing changes the texture and makes it much more delicious and easier to work with!

Once you’ve gotten your thawed tofu out of the fridge, wrap it in a paper towel and squeeze it firmly. Lots of water should come out. Now, cube it on the cutting board and drop it in the marinade (above). Let it sit for a few minutes and let it soak up most of the juice… yum wasabi!

Next, heat the oil in about a 10″ skillet. Drop the tofu in and allow it to fry for a few minutes on each side until you get a nice golden brown color and crispy texture. Try to only turn the tofu once as that helps it be crispier once finished. Once it is brown on both sides drain it on a paper towel. Pour out most of the oil, but leave a little in the skillet for the veggies!

Hot Peppered Zucchs!

Ingredients:

• 2 large zucchini, halved, sliced
• 1/2 red bell pepper, chopped
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Directions:
With just a little bit of the oil leftover from the tofu, stir-fry the zucchini, bell peppers, and spices over medium heat until the zucchs start to soften. Drain these onto a paper towel when they’re finished as well.

Putting together the Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 head Romaine lettuce, chopped
• 2 roma tomatoes, diced

Directions
Mix the chilled greens and tomatoes with the fried tofu and zucchini. Give it a light toss! You can dig in at this point or top it off with the gin dressing.

Gin Dressing

Ingredients:

• 1 tsp spicy mustard
• 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 3 Tbsp Gin (Tanqueray)

Directions
Simply whisk these together! I prefer a lightly-dressed salad. You could increase the proportions if you want to taste the dressing more. I find that the gin gives the dressing a very bright flavor.

Enjoy!

• 1 head cauliflower (purple if desired)
• 1 head broccoli
• 1 small squash
• 1 head garlic
• 1 medium onion
• 1/4c pine Nuts
• 1/8c olive oil
• 1tsp. red pepper flakes
• salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 450
• Chop the cauliflower, broccoli, and peeled squash into chunks. I like the chunks to be just-larger-than-bite-size.
• Toast the pine nuts in a skillet over medium heat watching carefully not to burn them
• Break apart the head of garlic, but do not peel the cloves. Keep them in their skin
• Combine the veggies, nuts, garlic, and spices into a large bowl. Drizzle on the olive oil and toss to coat everything.
• Pour into a glass dish and roast for 20 minutes
• Take out, stir, and bake for another 20 minutes
Pull out and enjoy!

I serve this as a main course, but it would make a nice side dish as well. (By the way, the garlic still in its skin is delicious by itself. Pick one of the clove sup and squeeze it until the delicious roasted innards come out. Yum.

]]> http://www.shawnlankton.com/2008/02/roasted-rosemary-veggies/feed/ 0 http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/12/baked-beets-with-curry-sauce/ http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/12/baked-beets-with-curry-sauce/#comments Wed, 12 Dec 2007 03:27:10 +0000 Shawn Lankton http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/12/baked-beets-with-curry-sauce/ I have been a big beet fan for some time now, and I enjoy turning others on to the magic of beets. (For more on this, read “Jitterbug Perfume“). I usually stir-fry beets and it turns out nice, but I recently heard of baking them. This sounded like a great low-hassle way of preparing these voluptuous, vibrant roots.


Sure enough, this turned out to be easy and delicious! This is far and away my new favorite beet recipe, and will be a good introductory dish to convert non-beet-eaters. Give it a try (and look below for baking instructions). As usual, this is 100% vegan and tasty-tasty-tasty. Happy pink pooping!

Ingredients

• 3 large beets
• 1/4 c soy milk
• 1/8 c vegetable oil
• 1/3 of 1 banana
• 2 Tbsp Curry Powder
• 1 Tbsp Powdered Ginger
• 1 tsp honey

Directions

Preheat the oven to 450. Meanwhile, wash off the beets, and remove the stems, but leave the tough skin on. (By the way, the stems are edible, healthy, and delicious… but they don’t make an appearance in this recipe.) Wrap the beets in tin foil, and put them in a dish. Line the dish with foil too, because the beets will leak when baked, and you don’t want a mess in your oven. Once the beets are wrapped, put them in the oven and bake them for about 2 hours.



After the two hours, take the beets out and let them cool. (I let mine cool overnight in the fridge.) Then, unwrap them and cut off the top and bottom. In the sink you’ll be delighted at how easily the tough skins now come right off in your hands, leaving nice, plump, peeled beets! Slice the beets into quarter inch slices and place them on a plate (decoratively, of course!)

Now, on to the sauce. This is simple. Combine all the other ingredients. It’s best if you can blend, whip, or whisk them together so that the banana gets smashed, and the oil and spices get well mixed. Now, Pour the sauce over the beets and serve! You’ll love this… I promise!

]]> http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/12/baked-beets-with-curry-sauce/feed/ 2 http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/5-minute-cranberry-sauce/ http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/5-minute-cranberry-sauce/#comments Thu, 29 Nov 2007 17:08:38 +0000 Shawn Lankton http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/5-minute-cranberry-sauce/ Even though I try to eat vegan most of the time, I just can’t help but eat turkey on Thanksgiving… and the next day. But, although we had turkey leftovers, we didn’t have any cranberry sauce leftovers when I went to make my mom’s famous turkey and cranberry sauce sandwiches. So, I whipped this stuff up in 5 minutes and it was as good as if you made it on the stove for hours and hours… here’s what I did:


5 Minute Cranberry Sauce

Ingredients

• 6 oz (1/2 bag) Cranberries
• 2 Tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• a dash of ground cloves
• 1/4 cup orange juice

Directions

Combine the ingredients in a microwave safe bowl, and stir up so that the sugar and spices are evenly mixed. Then, nuke the combination for 3 minutes (MAKE SURE TO COVER!!). If you don’t cover this up, the cranberries will pop and you’ll have little red specs all over your microwave. After the first 3 minutes, squash some of the cranberries with a fork and generally stir the stuff up. Then, nuke it for another 2 minutes. Pull it out, and voila! Cranberry sauce ready for sandwiches. I actually stuck mine in the freezer for another few minutes so it would cool down enough, but you get the idea.

]]> http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/5-minute-cranberry-sauce/feed/ 0 http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/ginger-garlic-walnut-soy-veggies/ http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/ginger-garlic-walnut-soy-veggies/#comments Mon, 26 Nov 2007 18:43:49 +0000 Shawn Lankton http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/ginger-garlic-walnut-soy-veggies/ This is one of three recipes that I made this Thanksgiving weekend… Expect “5 minute Cranberry Sauce” and “Hummaganoushus” soon. This particular recipe, though, is a good one that I actually made up last Thanksgiving. This is a great general-purpose sauce that is full of flavor and will add zing to anything you put it on. I of course usually put it on veggies : )

Ginger-Garlic-Walnut-Soy Veggies

Ingredients

• 1/8 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 head of garlic (about 6 cloves, peeled)
• 2″piece of whole ginger root (peeled), OR 1 Tbsp of powdered ginger
• 1/8 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. red pepper powder
• 1/2 tsp. lemon grass
• Soy milk or water as needed
• Lots of great, cooked veggies!

Directions

This part is really simple if you have a food processor or blender… Process that stuff! Just blend everything but the water and veggies up until they are smooth. You can add water or soy milk as needed to get the right consistency. I like the sauce to be a little runnier than a milk shake. Once its all blended pour it over the veggies and toss them around so they get coated. Enjoy!

I made this to put on broccoli and collard greens. I threw a couple of un-blended chopped walnuts into this mix, and cooked the veggies with some mashed garlic. The end result was amazing. The ginger and red pepper will really wake your mouth up while the salty-garlic flavor calms down the flavor and makes you feel… like you’re at Thanksgiving dinner!

]]> http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/ginger-garlic-walnut-soy-veggies/feed/ 0 http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/cran-apple-sauce/ http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/cran-apple-sauce/#comments Wed, 14 Nov 2007 02:06:22 +0000 Shawn Lankton http://www.shawnlankton.com/2007/11/cran-apple-sauce/ My buddy Naomi suggested that I make some apple sauce when she visited from NYC two weeks ago. Actually, she insisted and we bought a bunch of ingredients at Your Dekalb Farmers’ Market. So, here I sat weeks later, lots of apples, cranberries, and cinnamon in my house and no recipe. So, I got on the internets and came up with this. (based on this one from epicurious)


Cran-Apple Sauce

Ingredients

• 5 apples (any kind, I used 3 red delicious and 2 gala)
• 6oz. whole cranberries
• 2 whole cinnamon sticks (3″ long)
• 1 tsp. powdered orange peel (could substitute some OJ)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp. lemon juice
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar


Directions

Peel and core the apples and cut them into bite-size bits. Put these into a large pot with all other ingredients. Stir the mixture somewhat until all the sugar/spices/juices are mixed up. Then bring the whole thing to a simmer. Allow it to cook covered for 15 minutes, then uncovered for another 5. Remove it from heat and take out the cinnamon sticks. After that, get after the sauce with a wooden spoon until the apples are as mashed as you like. (I prefer it chunky, so I pretty much left it alone. You could use a fork/beater/blender if you wanted it smoother) Then, let it cool and enjoy!



This was super easy to make and tastes really good. Give it a try, and let me know what you think. (You know, I wanted to call this post “Vegan Cran-Apple Sauce,” but… lets be honest. Who puts meat in apple sauce?!)

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